Diogenites are named for Diogenes of Apollonia, an ancient Greek philosopher who was the first to suggest an outer space origin for meteorites. They believed to originate from deep within the crust of the asteroid 4 Vesta, and as such are part of the HED meteorite clan. Composed of igneous rocks of plutonic origin, having solidified slowly enough deep within Vesta’s crust to form crystals which are larger than in the eucrites. These crystals are primarily magnesium-rich orthopyroxene, with small amounts of plagioclase and olivine. [wiki]
Located shortly after the fall, it has fresh black fusion crusted on 25% of the specimen. The meteorite looks like it tumbled into the Bilanga plains as the remaining fusion crust is on five distinct places around the exterior. The interior is a pale green diogenite accentuated with slightly olive-green crystals within the matrix. The edges of the crystals glisten with reflection of the cleavage. The size is about 1.5 inches long.
37 x 27 x 26 mm
34 g complete individual$2,100.00
At least 25kg of meteorites with fresh black fusion crust were collected after a widely witnessed meteorite shower. Pieces are reported to have fallen in the villages of Bilanga-Yanga and Gomponsago. Diogenites are a relatively rare type of meteorite. Macroscopic native copper up to 2mm has been observed in Bilinga.
Bilanga Diogenite
